Squid Game Season 3 Review
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Date Created: 2025-06-27 20:44
3.5
Squid Game Season 3 Review: Directed and written by Hwang Dong-hyuk, 오징어게임 시즌3, concludes this dark tale of death, lies and desperation. The final season cast is Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-hun, Wi Ha-joon, Park Gyu-young, Yim Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul, Lee Jin-uk, Park Sung-hoon, Jo Yu-ri and others. This Netflix original was released on June 27th, 2025, and has six episodes, all roughly an hour long. The story continues to follow Gi-hun (Player 456) as he attempts to find the secrets of the corrupt game, topple the Front Man, and achieve justice for the dead from prior seasons.
Netflix’s Squid Game Season 3 begins in a rebellion gone awry within the game arena. Formerly a symbol of resistance, Gi-hun is now broken, both body and soul. Dragged back into the game, and now the only known survivor of the rebellion, he finds himself realising he’s been stiffed. A man who once tried to inspire others is now chained between rounds, filled with rage and despair, grieving the loss of his friend.
In the beginning, instead of concern over escape or rescuing others, Gi-hun has one thing on his mind — revenge. And that is on Kang Dae-ho (Kang Ha-neul), who betrayed the group at the time of the rebellion. That change of tone provides this final season with a different tone, less optimistic, more brutal. And I feel that does work, but only partially.
Squid Game Season 3 Review
When Squid Game initially dropped in 2021, the world was shocked. It was intense, emotional and fresh. So when news of Season 2 dropped, I was excited, yet nervous, as sequels tend to be disappointments. And much to my shock, all of Season 2 was as good. That only made me more intrigued by Season 3. I was interested to see how it would all conclude. And I must say Squid Game Final Season is exciting and has moments of brilliance.
But when the players are not playing, the storytelling is not as breakneck as it used to be. With fewer players left, there’s less interaction, less group dynamics, fewer unexpected deals or backstabbing. Its story also becomes more focused towards being about some people and their personal experiences. It’s still engaging, but I did miss the unstable force of nature that previous seasons had.
The acting in Netflix Squid Game Season 3 is simply the best. Can’t really even complain about it. The cast sells it, especially Lee Jung-jae, who plays Gi-hun; he’s on an emotional rollercoaster. I’ve not always been a fan of his decisions this season, but I’ve gotten them. He’s not just a victim anymore; he’s a man determined to bring down the system from the inside, even with consequences.
I loved this darker version of him, and while I did miss the more wholesome version of him we were initially introduced to in the series, I felt this was a necessary evolution. On the other hand, Kang Dae-ho (Kang Ha-neul) is selfish, cowardly and easy to loathe. He is the recipient of Gi-hun’s worst behaviour, and their feud is one of the more engaging things about the first few episodes.
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Players such as Jun-hee (Jo Yu-ri) and Geum-ja (Kang Ae-sim) impressed me. They weren’t merely players; they injected heart and hope into a heartless world. And Geum-ja’s latter scene actually affected me too. She wasn’t just another character who succumbed to death brought about by the game; she decided herself how to die. It was so overwhelmingly sad, and it made me ponder what people feel like when they think they’ve lost everything.
But not everybody comes out on top. The VIPs are back, and if anything, they’re more annoying than ever. Their cheesy one-liners and parodies made me roll my eyes. They ruin the atmosphere and add nothing to the storyline.
The sets are great, and world-building is as strong as ever. But some of the moments stretch the logic too far. Some games were not so much clever creativity as they were ridiculous drama. One of the games in particular had such a bizarre effect that it yanked me out of the story entirely. And some of the plot points were rushed or unjustified, such as the plot thread with Kang No-eul, which spins around too much. I wanted to have more of an emotional connection with her, but the writing just didn’t allow her to breathe.
I was laughing at how absurd some of the scenes were, crying at the tragic ones and clicking “Next” because I couldn’t help but keep going despite not wanting to. That’s what a good show can do, even if it is a bit uncomfortable doing so. It has its flaws, naturally. But it has heart, too.
Squid Game Final Season Review: Summing Up
Season 3 of Squid Game isn’t flawless, but it’s a fitting conclusion to a show that never played it safe. It is emotional and engrossing, but also patchy and disorganised. It doesn’t conclude with a bang, but a whimper — one that makes us remember why this game was a bad choice to begin with.
